


Wait and See

by adios_cowboy



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: (kind of), (that's barely even mentioned though), Canon Compliant, Crushes, During Canon, Explicit Language, First Kiss, Fluff, Head Injury, Holding Hands, Keith (Voltron) has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Kissing, M/M, Minor Violence, Nightmares, Pining Keith (Voltron), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Reminiscing, Team as Family, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:08:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24991318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adios_cowboy/pseuds/adios_cowboy
Summary: Keith has a bad day, but Lance makes it worth it.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 86





	Wait and See

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Psychelso](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Psychelso/gifts).



> for my best friend kelso; happy birthday dumdum

When Keith opens his eyes in the morning it’s to the color of dark oak wood. He nearly forgets how he got here: another mission with  _ Lance.  _ They’re cool now, they don’t mind each other at least, but Keith can’t deny that these trips are rather difficult. 

That’s besides the point, though, because it’s snowing out. This planet was never known for such a thing, at least according to Allura. It wouldn’t even be the right season. Keith hurries his way out of his makeshift bed and searches for Lance. It doesn’t take very long before he finds him chucking wood into the fireplace. 

“What are you doing?” Keith crosses his arms, leaning into the room. He still doesn’t understand how they end up sharing an entire place together every time they have these kinds of assignments.

Lance turns around with a huff. “I  _ told  _ you, dude. Totally worth chopping all that wood last night.”

“This planet isn’t even supposed to be cold!” Keith already feels exasperated. 

Lance doesn’t dig into him as much this time. “Yeah, well it is. We still have to wait for that chief guy to come out here anyway so can you just- come sit down already, geez.” 

With a tired sigh Keith actually does as told, flopping down onto the couch where Lance throws his head back. It was ridiculous seeing him butcher so much shit last night but Keith agrees that yes, maybe Lance is right this time.  _ Just  _ this time _.  _

Despite sleeping so much all night, something Keith hardly does anyway, he feels extremely tired. Lance doesn’t seem at all bothered when he gives in and closes his eyes to the warmth of the fire. It’s not that he plans to pass out, he’s just resting his eyes until the chief comes over. Lance doesn’t harp on him about it either. 

…

_ “...eith. Keith!”  _

_ Keith’s eyes flutter open. It’s supposed to be winter, it shouldn’t be so hot right now. He realizes he can’t breath, can’t even see. There’s black smoke filling every corner of the room, a scorching heat peeling at his skin. Fire. _

_ “Keith, we have to go-” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Shiro?”  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ The hand that touches his skin feels like ice. It’s so cold that it burns.  _

_ “Shiro- what’s-” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ It takes one blink and all of the smoke is gone. He can breathe and he can see, but he wishes he didn’t. It’s the sight of his dad, skin blackened like coal, rotten flesh spilling out into the ground below. Keith knows it’s him without recognizing the face. It doesn’t matter how deformed, he knows it’s his dad. He knows it’s too late. He failed again.  _

_ When he hears the screams he screams back. It’s all of his fault, he fucked up and he fucked up badly.  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Stop!” He screams at the top of his lungs. “Please, please stop! Don’t do this, don’t-!” _ _  
_ _  
_ He screams until he’s awake, still on the couch where Lance sat with him just moments ago… 

“Keith! Keith, it’s okay. You’re with me, it’s Lance. We’re on a mission together, you’re safe-”

“Sorry.” Keith’s voice is ragged from the misuse. Lance is looking down at him with genuine concern and it doesn’t seem to go away. Keith notices now that he’s been cradling him. Ironic. “Sorry, I-”   
  
“Keith, you’re gonna pass out, man. Just breathe. You’re hyperventilating!”   
  
“I…” He didn’t even notice. 

Keith wills himself to breathe as Lance moves back a little further. It’s been a while since he’s had these kinds of nightmares. Lance doesn’t question him though, just waits patiently. It’s almost out of character, but Keith knows Lance has a soft side too. 

“You okay to do the rest of this mission?” Lance holds back a frown. “We still have to find those elixirs for Allura. It might take a couple hours, too-”   
  
“I’m fine.” Keith breathes. “Did the… did you talk to the chief?”    
  
“Oh, yeah, sorry. I thought you might’ve needed the sleep so I handled it on my own.” And then he does that  _ smirk,  _ the smug little bastard.

“Pff, okay.” Keith feels more relaxed now at least. “Then let’s go already.”   
  
“I think you should take another quick break first, man.” Lance scratches his head. “I mean, you know, you just had like, a full on panic attack there.”   
  
“I’m  _ fine.  _ It was just a dream.”   
  
He doesn’t catch whatever Lance says under his breath in response but it doesn’t matter. They came here to do their job so that’s what matters right now. 

The elixirs they need to get were last left out in the hills farther out. Mountains here are easy to navigate so Keith isn’t too worried about it; he and Lance both get into Red together with the map the chief programmed for them. Keith starts zoning out again and realizes that his nightmare was actually a little much. He hopes Lance isn’t as focused on what happened earlier as he is...

“Keith. Pay attention while you’re flying, dude.”  
  
_Right._ “Sorry.”  
  
He can feel Lance wanting to ask if he’s okay again and he wishes for it to stop. They’re on a mission, their job is important; They can’t be distracted.

“It’s that mountain.” Keith squints. 

Lance yawns next to him. “Guess so.”   
  
“Are you even taking this seriously…”   
  
“Oh, I’m not allowed to yawn now?” Lance glares. 

Keith rolls his eyes. He’s not doing this today. 

“Yeah, thought so.” Lance mumbles. “Well let’s get out already then.”   
  
“Wait.” 

Keith doesn’t know what this is, doesn’t know what’s making him so panicked right now. It hits so suddenly and he doesn’t think he can get up. Even his legs are shaking. 

“Keith?”   
  
“Hah- I can’t-”   
  
“What is-”   
  
“It’s not supposed to be winter.” Keith grips the handles beside the pilot chair, knuckles pale. “Allura said it doesn’t even snow here.” 

Lance’s mouth doesn’t close for a while and Keith is starting to feel even worse. He feels his heart pounding through his skin. He’s panicking.

Lance is suddenly very close. “It’s okay, Keith. We’re gonna be fine.” He’s holding his hands, warm.    
  
Keith doesn’t know what he would do if it were Lance- if his hands were cold and limp instead... He remembers seeing Lance on the ground, injured from the bomb he saved Coran from. It’s terrifying to imagine, terrifying to remember the burn scars that are still there on Lance’s back. He was nearly  _ dead.  _

“We’re okay.” Lance has his hands on Keith’s face now, gentle. 

He nods his reply. Doesn’t know what else to say. 

Lance fills the silence between them like always; It’s so easy for him. “I can go get it myself… maybe.”   
  
“No, I can go.” Keith is quick to his feet. 

Lance smiles at him and Keith hopes he never does it again because he might just melt into the floor. He shakes it off as he follows Lance out into the cold. 

“Okay, Coran said it would be in the caves here. The elixirs should be pretty easy to find since their materials make them super bright. We only need three of them anyway.” Lance jumps down from a chunk of rock, the gravel crunching beneath his feet. Keith follows suit again. “Careful,” Lance winks. 

“Whatever.” He ignores how that makes him feel, hopes the cold covers up the fact that he’s blushing at something this dumb. 

“Quiznack, it’s dark in here!” Lance’s voice echoes through the cave. “Got your light, Keith?”   
  
“No? You didn’t bring yours?”   
  
They stare at each other and the horror dawns on them. Lance is the only one besides Shiro who knows about Keith’s fear of the dark. Just great. 

“Hey~” He can tell Lance is wiggling his eyebrows. “My brother used to do this when we went out fishing sometimes; We would stay out too late and it would get super dark… but the catch-- he always held my hand. Like this-” Keith is too shocked to pull away when Lance laces their fingers together. “-and we’d walk all the way back home. It’s not so bad.” 

“I don’t need you to comfort me.” Keith grumbles but doesn’t pull away.    
  
“Mm…”   
  
They walk together while Lance continues his stories about growing up with all of his siblings. Keith feels a little jealous of the enthusiasm. He really is so much different from him, Keith thinks. He kind of feels like Lance is someone he doesn’t deserve. 

“Oh, look! Lights!” Lance tightens his grip and pulls Keith along. “That’s gotta be the elixirs.”    
  
“Slow down, we don’t know if-”   
  
“Aack-!”    
  
Both of them fall through the cave floor when Lance runs ahead. It doesn’t take a long time before they hit more rock on the drop down. The gravel and stone must’ve fell through. He can’t even tell how far they are from the top because of how dark it is. 

“Keith?” Lance groans. “You good? Keith?”   
  
“I’m right here.”    
  
“Shit. Guess we’re screwed.”   
  
Keith sits up with a pained grunt and feels for the wall so he can rest against it. “Dammit, Lance.”    
  
“Hey! It’s not my fault!”    
  
“Just shut up.”   
  
“ _ You  _ shut up!”   
  
_ There’s the Lance he knows. _

He sighs again and rests his head in his hands. What a lucky day. 

“Ugh, I’ll see if there’s a way to climb from here.” He hears Lance’s footsteps grinding against the dirt. 

They’re completely blind like this. “We should’ve gone back for a light.”   
  
“‘The past is in your head. The future is in your hands.’” Lance tries and fails to mimic a British accent.

“Dude, what?”   
  
“Dunno. Quote I heard once.” Lance chuckles, voice farther now. “Probably Shakespeare.”   
  
“I’m almost 100% sure Shakespeare didn’t say that.”   
  
“Key word:  _ Almost.”  _

That gets him laughing again. “Honestly, you sounded like Allura.”

There’s the sound of Lance picking at the rocks ahead and then he uses the stupid voice again. “Ahem, Paladins. It is time to train. Please get into your armor, now!” 

“Ugh, no. You sound terrible.”   
  
“Yeah?” there’s a smile in his voice. “Think you can do better?”   
  
Keith takes the bait before even debating on it. “ _ Lonce _ ! What do you think you’re doing? It’s darker than juniberry season in here!”    
  


“Dude, what was that?” Lance bursts out laughing. 

“I was trying to make like, figurative language…” he flushes at the continued laughter. “Oh come on-” 

“God, you’re too much.” Lance comes back and finds his way next to Keith. Guess he’s really given up now. “You’re ridiculous,  _ Samurai.”  _

“You’re really bringing that back?” Keith groans. “You know I’m not even Japanese, right?”   
  
“Hey, you don’t have to be Japanese to be a Samurai! Haven’t you heard of Yasuke?”    
  
Keith punches him playfully in the shoulder. “Yasuke may have been of African origin, Lance, but he was still Japanese.”    
  
“Oh? So Keith actually  _ knows  _ something about the real world for once?”   
  
“Shut up.” Their shoulders bump together; They don’t move apart.    
  


“So…” Lance starts again. “Think we’re gonna die here?”    
  


“That’s negative of you…” 

“Or realistic. I can’t believe this.” Lance laughs _.  _ “The two  _ greatest _ paladins die because they got stuck in the dark. What a way to go out.”   
  
“You don’t sound very bummed about it for such a meek fate.”   
  
“Well, maybe it was worth it.” 

Keith hums. He doesn’t know what to say. 

“Well, I’m glad I’m at least here with you.” 

Keith’s breath hitches. Now he  _ really  _ doesn’t know what to say. 

“God, sorry. That was weird. Really weird _._ Sorry, I just-”  
  
“No- I, uh… I’m glad I’m here with you too? I mean, I like you. Like, as a friend! You’re a good friend.”  
  
“Just a friend? Thought there was more between us…”  
  
“What?”  
  
“Pff- I’m joking! Man, I can just imagine the face you’re making.”  
  
And Keith decides that if they really are gonna die here, then fuck it. “Fuck you, Lance.” He takes a deep breath. “I actually like you, asshole.”  
  
…  
  


It’s suddenly way too quiet and Keith regrets every single decision he’s ever made in his life. He doesn’t take it back though. What’s the point, they’re stuck anyway and he’s already so exhausted that he doesn’t even want to try getting out at this point. Lance is still silent for a while but he finally speaks up.

“Did you mean that? Seriously?” There’s real questioning to his voice. “Romantically…”   
  
“Yes, Lance.”  _ Come on, what else? _ _  
_ _  
_ “Well, quiznack.” 

“Ugh, I shouldn’t have said-”   
  
“No, wait! I like you too. Romantically.” 

“Pff, yeah.  _ This _ is romantic.” He’s honestly dying inside right now.  _ Lance just said he likes him too- _

  
“Yeah, well whose idea was it to confess in the throes of death?”   
  
“We’re not even dying.”  _ Yet. _

They don’t have time to continue the conversation before the ground above starts collapsing again. He feels Lance holding his hand. 

_ So this is it? Seriously? _

He closes his eyes and feels Lance get closer to him, right in front of him, and then he feels him  _ kiss  _ him. It’s a simple thing, but it’s his first kiss so what would he know…

They don’t say anything as the rocks continue crumbling around them. He yelps when he feels one hit him sharp in the head and then he loses consciousness. 

\--

“...on’t know, the ground collapsed out of nowhere. We were just walking!” 

“Calm down Lance. He’s gonna be fine, it’s not a serious injury.”   
  
“I thought we were dead, Shiro.” The voice Keith wakes up to is the same as this morning, concerned. “How am I supposed to be calm right now?”    
  
“He’s awake. Come on you two.” It’s Allura’s voice.

“Allura? What…” Keith sits up. “What happened?”    
  
She smiles and it actually calms him down. “There was a little accident in the caves where we found you and Lance. We were all concerned when neither of you answered your radios and came down to find you there. Got those elixirs as well.”   
  
“Yeah, nice job!” Pidge quips, laughing when Lance turns to glare daggers at her. 

“Hey, you wouldn’t have found them if we didn’t go there to begin with!” Lance hollers. 

Shiro shakes his head and steps forward. “We’re all glad you’re okay. Both of you.”   
  
That brings Keith to smile again. 

It’s short lived when everyone nods and starts heading out of the med bay. Everyone except Lance. 

“We’ll leave you two alone.” Shiro nods to them. “Lance explained he had to speak to you in private.”    
  
Pidge snickers and Keith flushes. God he doesn’t even want to know what Lance really said…

“Uhh, so…” Lance sits next to him when everyone is out of sight. “About that whole incident?”    
  
“Yeah.” Keith’s head is back in his hands. This is already mortifying.

“You’re okay right? You were only in a pod for a couple hours, but I was still scared shitless you know? You’ve had a pretty shitty day from my perspective.” 

Keith sits up and honestly doesn’t even feel that bad. Lance is here, Shiro is here, the whole team is here, and there’s nothing more he wants now. They’re not  _ dead.  _ It’s a dark kind of sentiment but it still makes him feel good. And besides that-   
  
“I mean, it wasn’t so bad. You don’t change your mind right? You said you liked me.”   
  
Lance is the one flushing now and Keith kind of likes how this feels. “Uh- yeah-”    
  
“Then I’m okay.”   
  
“You’re… kind of a sap.”    
  
“Coming from you!”    
  
The doors burst open again and everyone floods through. “Are you two already fighting?!”   
  
“I  _ told  _ you, Hunk! You owe me.” Pidge cackles.   
  
“Wh-” Lance splutters. 

Keith is frozen. “Were you guys just standing there this whole time?!”    
  
Allura sighs. “I wasn’t sure you guys could stand to be alone right now.”    
  
“That’s on Allura. However, Hunk and I bet against each other that you guys were already together by now. And I win, by the way, so Hunk owes me!”   
  
“Okay, we’ll seriously give you guys your space now.” Shiro ushers everyone out. “Have fun.”   
  
Pidge is hysterical. “Yeah,  _ have fun! _ ”   
  
Keith doesn’t think they’re ever gonna live this down. “Goddammit.”   
  
“Well we don’t have to tell them anything now I guess?” Lance offers.   
  
Keith just smiles at him. “Let’s just get out of here so that no one else snoops on our conversation.”   
  
“Ha, okay-”   
  
Keith is the one to grab him by the hand this time. It’s a sudden boost of confidence but he thinks he deserves it. It’s been a day.

  
“And you still owe me for fucking up today. I warned you to slow down!”   
  
“Okay, whatever lover boy.” Lance laughs. “You know it was kind of worth it.”   
  
And it was, but he doesn’t have to admit that. 


End file.
